Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1887-03-09
FARMERS WIVES.
BY NAB Ellie,

delivered at an agricultural school IN
Connecticut by Gen. Stewart L. Wood.
ford. He said: "Among 1900 agri'
cultural colleges established in the
world, in this generation, | have yet
to hear OF one that has bestowed any
attention upon the condition and
hardships of the farmers wife" He
told q great many things we all know
to be true; that there were 10 con-
veniences for doing work in the
farmers kitchen such as are very COM
mon in the city, and but little ma.
chinery to assist in doing the work.
The General also said that in the in
crease of insane people in the country
there was g. larger percentage among
farmers wives than any other class,
except those who drank themselves
mad.
Many farmers do the best they can
to make the house convenient-buy
all the labor-saving machinery they
can and hire girl to do the hardest
of the work when they can find one),
and try in every way to make life ais
pleasant as possible for their wives.
But there are many others just as
well off who seem to think that money
is wasted if used for the benefit of the
poor woman who is unfortunately
tied to him, but who he seems to
think is Of less Importance than his
horses and COWS.
| read the article several times, and
/ thought that the Generals mother
must have been farmers wife, or he
would not be so well posted as to the
lack of all articles Of convenience for
their use. | also thought that he
could never have been farmer him.
self, or he would not have thought
that his wife had hard time. I do
not mean by this that farmers think
less of their wives than other men do;
but do mean that as a class they are
often less thoughtful OF their comfort
than other men with the same means
usually are.
When / come In contact with a man
of this kind | always think of q story
Ionce read OF a man who had recently
buried his wife. Afriend spoke to him
about his loss. EYES," he said, with
a groan, ct is q great loss. She was
an awful smart woman. She would
do more work than two hired girls.
Why, last summer she made all the
garden, MIXED six COWS, fed the calves
and raised three pet lambs, besides
doing the houseWork and making the
butter. And she helped us In the field
when we were hurried in hayiDg and
harvest. She nigh about saved me a
mans work"
My attention was again called to
this matter. g. short time ago, hearing
a conversation between certain
farmer and his wife, about building a
new house. He owns great GUAM
tity OF land. has over twenty horses
and q great many cattle, sheep and
swine. He has four large barns and
lots of other buildings and I think his
house is the poorest building he owns.
1t has tipped so far one way that
most Of the doors will not shut or the
windows open. 1t looks on the out
side as though it had been built before
the flood; but inside it is ALWAYS neat
and orderly. The lady is very neat
housekeeper and makes the bast of
what she has. She said:
81 wish we had as good house as
this" Where they were visiting.)
"Well, you need not wish for it, )" he
.grunted, 81 hain't 81, 900 or more to
build house like this"
81 would not care if it were not as
large as this" was the reply; "but
would like to haveroom enough to set
up what beds we need, and not have
to make them on the floor whenever
We have anyone extra to stay over
night"
You needn't invite company to
stay all night, If it, too much trouble
to wait on 'em."
But she said: "It is not always COM
pany; it is often hired men. And
then, have no closet, or any place to
hang clothes but just in the bedrooms;
and they are so much in the way and
get sc dusty, there"
Don't need to have EN- 80 nice that
a little dust will hurt en-" was the
pleasant reply.
She looked as though she wished
that she had not started the subject,
and felt like saying, "Brute''
Now Is not such man pleasant
companion for life? Is If eny wonder
that some farmers wives lose their
reason? l believe that man is perfectly
able to build comfortable house,
and furnish it with all that is neces-
sary for comfort and convenience; but
if he were got he might speak to his
wife In q pleasant manner.
Of course, all farmers are not so ig-
norant and ill-natured as this one.
Farming, itself, has no tendency to
degrade and brutalize q man. Many
farmers of my acquaintance are Just
BIS much gentlemen as any I have ever
seen in the city. But if man has
little or nc education, if he lives in
the city he is daily brought in contact
with educated people, and is apt to
initiate them, and so become more re-
fined himself. But if he lives on g.
farm. he has little time for visiting or
reading, and he becomes 80 absorbed
in his work that he forgets many of
the little tricks of politeness which he
thought necessary to practice when
young.
WHAT is the remedy for this? I be-
lieve that it is education. Many of
the men who now live on the farms of
Wisconsin, were brought up where
0ah0o1n